Continuity & change in the American family
By: Lynne M. Casper and Suzanne M. Bianchi
Contributors: Bianchi, Suzanne M
Publisher: Sage Publications
Published: 2002
Place of publication: Thousand Oaks, Calif
Language: eng
Number of pages: 370
Subjects: Family -- United States; Social change -- United States
Other titles: Continuity and change in the American family
Description: "Continuity & Change in the American Family engages students with issues they see every day in the news, while providing them with a comprehensive description of the social demography of the American family. Understanding ever-changing family systems and patterns requires taking the pulse of contemporary family life from time to time. This book paints a portrait of family continuity and change in the latter half of the 20th century, with focus on data from the 1970s to present.

The authors explore such topics as the growth in cohabitation, changes in childbearing, and how these trends affect family life. Other topics include the changing lives of single mothers, fathers, and grandparents and increasing economic disparities among families; child care and child well-being; and combining paid work and family."--BOOK JACKET.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index
Table of contents: title: Is the American family in decline? A note on the demographic approach to studying families. Theoretical frameworks in family demography. Demographic transition theory. The life course perspective and family demography. Economic theories of the family. A note on data and family terminology. Choice of topics and organization of this volume; title: Changing families in a changing society. A changing society. A changing economy. Changing norms of family life. An older society. Changing households and families. What is happening to the two-parent family? Racial differences in household and family structure. Delayed marriage and living arrangements of young adults. Cohabitation. Marriage, divorce, and remarriage. Childbearing. Living arrangements of the elderly. Intergenerational ties and multigenerational living. Conclusion; title: Cohabitation. Who cohabits and how has this changed over time? A note on gay and lesbian cohabiting-couple households. Cohabitation and marriage. Are cohabiting and married individuals becoming more alike? Cohabitation and single life. Different purposes, different cohabitors. Race and the meaning of cohabitation. Premarital cohabitation and risk of divorce. Conclusion; title: Childbearing / by Martin O'Connell. Entering motherhood : childbearing among cohorts of women. Number of children and childlessness. Generational differences in childbearing. Nonmarital childbearing. Employment patterns before and after pregnancy. Birth expectations. Fertility in men's lives. Conclusion; title: Single-mother families. Who is a single mother? Trends in single motherhood. Cohabitation andsingle-parenting.  Cohort change in lifetime experience of single-mothering. Changing socioeconomic characteristics of single mothers. Variation among single mothers. Single mothers and welfare reform. Conclusion; title: Fathering. Beliefs about father involvement : ideals and realities. Declining fatherhood : long-term trends in men's coresidential.  Parenting. Lifetime estimates of parenthood. Father-only families and cohabitation. Characteristics of single and married fathers. Child custody. Contact between nonresident fathers and their children. Child support among nonresident fathers. Married fathers' time and activities with children. Fathers' and mothers' views on father involvement. Conclusion; title: Grandparenting. How has grandparenthood changed over the years? Grandparenting. Grandparenting and single-parenting. Multigenerational families with grandparents. Heterogeneity in multigenerational families with grandparents. Characteristics of grandparents in multigenerational families. The economic well-being of grandparents in multigenerational families. Racial differences in multigenerational families with grandparents. The economic well-being of grandchildren in multigenerational families. Conclusion; title: Child care. Growth in non-parental child care. How do parents choose child care? Accessibility. Affordability. Quality. Complexity of child care arrangements. Preschool-age children. School-age children. The importance of enrichment activities. Latchkey kids. Child care and child well-being. Conclusion; title: Child well-being. Changing numbers of U.S. children. A transformation of family life. Foster children and adopted children. Children in gay and lesbian